The curious reason was that his pictures appealed. I think I have
indicated that Swank was ultramodern in his tendencies. "Artless art,"
was his formula, often expressed by his slogan--_"A bas l'objectif!
Vive le subjonctif."_ Whatever that means, he scored with the
Filbertines who would gather in immense numbers wherever he set up his
easel.

This was due in part to his habit of standing with his back to the
scene which he proposed to paint and, bending over until his head
almost touched the ground, peering at the landscape between his
outspread legs.

"It intensifies the color," he explained. "Try it."

Baahaabaa bestowed a title on our artist--"Maimaue Ahiiahi"--"Tattooer
of Rainbows"--by which he was loudly acclaimed. Whinney and I used
to sing, "He's always tattooing rainbows!" but artistic vanity was
proof against such _bourgeoisie_.

Baahaabaa was tireless in suggesting new subjects for him to paint.
One day it would be a performance of the _Ataboi_, the languorously
sensuous dance which we had first seen in the women's compound; again
he would stage a scene of feasting, at which the men passed foaming
shells of _hoopa_ from hand to hand. A difficulty was that of
preventing the artist from quitting work and joining his models which
Swank always justified by saying that the greatest art resulted from
submerging oneself with one's subject.

"Look at Gaugin!" he used to say.